Main suspect in Stockholm truck attack appears in court, admits to terrorist crime

According to the Swedish Police Authority, Rakhmat Akilov was responsible for the deadly terror attack over the weekend in Stockholm. He was brought in front of a judge today for the first time and during the hearing, his lawyer said that Akilov has admitted that he was the terrorist responsible for the attack.

A few days after the deadly terror attack in Stockholm, in which four people were murdered and 15 others were injured, 39-year-old Rakhmat Akilov from Uzbekistan, the main suspect in the vehicular attack, appeared in front of a judge for the first time. During the hearing, Akilov’s lawyer said that his client has confessed to police that he was responsible for the terror attack. The Swedish authorities have asked that Akilov remain in custody and according to news reports in the country, Akilov supports the murderous ISIS ideology and swore allegiance to the terrorist organization.

“His position is that he confessed to a terrorist crime and accepts therefore that he will be detained due to this," said Akilov’s lawyer during the hearing. The local prosecutor said that this terrorist crime ended in murder.

Rakhmat Akilov Photo Credit: Sky News/Channel 2 News

While the motive behind the terror attack is still unclear, the Swedish Police Authority said that it is certain that Akilov was behind the wheel of the truck that slammed into a crowded store. “There is nothing that indicates that he is the wrong person,” a statement released by the local police department earlier this week read. “The suspicions against the suspect have strengthened but we cannot rule out the possibility that other people were involved.”

“He was not under a current security investigation but he was known to us,” said Anders Thornberg, chief of the Swedish Security Service. “He was on our radar before.” Police said that a device was discovered in the truck but they did not say whether it was an explosive device, as some police officials told reporters earlier today.

“We found something in the truck on the driver’s seat,” said Dan Eliasson, chief of the Swedish Police Authority. “[It is a] technical device that doesn’t belong there. I don’t know at the moment whether it was a bomb or some sort of flammable device. We are waiting for the technical analysis.”